Focusing on supplementing and restoring degraded coral reefs with key groups of reef-building coral-paradigms in the restoration of Xidao Island's coral reef
Under the context of global change and increasing human activities,the coral reefs of Xidao Island in Sanya,Hainan,are experiencing degradation.The reef community mainly consists of massive coral colonies,with branching corals severely degraded.The proportion,quantity and diversity of the environmentally sensitive Acropora sp.have significantly declined.In light of this,this study focuses on the supplementation and restoration of key species(Acropora sp.)and conducts coral reef ecological restoration experiments using asexual propagation.The aim is to improve the coral community of the Xidao Island by supplementing the Acropora coral species and numbers,thereby promoting the functional recovery of the damaged coral reef ecosystem and maintaining ecological stability in the vicinity of the Xidao Island.Initially,using coral garden techniques,coral tree nurseries and floating bed nurseries were used to cultivate 2,500 seedlings of Acropora sp.corals.After 6 months of cultivation,6,221 corals with an average size of(13.1±1.7)cm were obtained for outplanting.Subsequently,the corals were transplanted to the nearshore native reef of Xidao Island using rivet method.The results showed that after 8 months of transplantation,the survival rate of transplanted corals reached 98%.The average size of corals was(19±0.17)cm,with an average growth rate of(0.73±0.17)cm/month/colony.The coral cover in the restoration area increased to 43.83%,with Acropora sp.corals accounting for 10.55%of the coverage.After 20 months of transplantation,the survival rate of transplanted corals was 93%.The average size of corals was(26.2±5.7)cm,with an average growth rate of(0.60±0.28)cm/month/colony.The coral cover in the restoration area increased to 61.49%,with Acropora sp.corals accounting for 15.93%of the coverage.Overall,this study demonstrates that the selected coral species,coupled with the coral nursery cultivation and rivet transplantation techniques,are effective in restoring Acropora corals in the degraded coral reef areas of the Xidao Island.This research can serve as a reference for the protection and restoration of typical nearshore degraded coral reef ecosystems in China,providing theoretical and technical support for the future development of coral reef restoration techniques in the country.
Xidao Island in Sanyacoral reefrestorationkey groupAcroporasp
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